Sealer



Oct. 26, 1948.

F. N. IRWIN, JR

SEALER Filed April 25, 1945 l l 91](3 1o TOF( .m www w .m N K FV, B

Patented Oct. 26, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SEALER Fra-nk N. Irwin, Jr.,` South Miami, Fla.

Application April 26, 1945', Serial N0. 590,486

5v Claims. l

It has become quite universal practice in respect to many articles of merchandise to` present or dispense them for sale in wax wrappers or wrappers of thermoplastic material. Such wrappers are widely used in connection with food products and particularly in respect to bakery products such as bread.

The present invention pertains to a sealer for the wax or Cellophane wrappers but in a sense could be called a resealer in that the device is intended for use in mending or resealing wrappers which have broken open due either to poor original sealing or to the handling of the bread or other product prior to its delivery to the store or customer.

The invention is not limited in its use to the sealing of bread wrappers, as will be readily une derstood, but this particular use has been selected as a means of imparting an understanding of the construction and operation of a sealer embodying the presentl inventive concept.

Bakeries have found that there have been great losses due to their products becoming unsealed prior to delivery to stores or :directly to the home, and the present invention is designed for installation in a bread delivery truck or wagon for quick and convenient resealing of broken bread wrapers by the bakery delivery man.

Speed and simplicity of operation of the device are essential factors as otherwise the delivery man would not take either the time or trouble to reseal the broken wrappers. These two attributes are present in the device comprising the present invention.

Simplicity and cheapness of manufacture are also essential in that a sealer must be provided for each of the many delivery trucks or wagons making up the fleet of delivery conveyances of the bakery. y

Other essential factors of construction and operation will appear from the following description when read in the light ci the accompanying drawings wherein is illustrated one form in which the inventive concept may be embodied.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the sealer.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. l looking in the direction indicated by arrows.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken, on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction indicated by arrows.

Referring new to the drawings and utilizing like reference characters and numerals to designate similar parts throughout the description, A designates a rectangular or other suitably shaped solid block preferably composed of hard wood which has, been given a stained, varnish or other suitable finish. At one of its ends or sides this block is provided with a bracket I by which it may be suitably rigidly detachably connected in any convenient location within the delivery truck by attachment to a part 2 of the truck. l

At one of its ends the block is hollowed out to receive a metallic box B. The opening 3 for the reception of the box is of a proper size to snugly.

receive the box and of a proper depth tol position the top 4 of the box flush with the upper face or top 5 of the block. The box is removably secured in the block by screws 6 passing through the box ears l with which the box is provided at its op pcsite top edges.

As space within the truck is at a premium and for the further reason that the sealer should not be in the way of the driver or bread delivery man, it is intended that' the device be kept to the smallest size possible. It has been found that a block slightly under eight inches in length, four inches in width and two inches in depth is adequate in size. The metallic box, the top of 'which becomes a heating plate as will hereafter appear, will be sulliciently large ii it is slightly under three inches square.

Although the element B has been referred to as a box it is not completely closed as will be seen by reference to Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings. At two of its opposite. sides the box is open and the bottom of the box is open with the exception of short inturned lower edges forming transversely f extending oppositely positioned shelf-like mem- 1Ders 8 and 9. A sheet of asbestos or other suitable insulating material ll rests upon the box bottom pieces 8 and S and. is of a size to completely close the lower end of the box.

To the asbestos sheet there is suitably secured as by hollow rivets il a mica sheet l2 which is of a slightly smaller. size than-the asbestos sheet to provide a surrounding margin l 3 surrounding the sheet and separating it from the side wallsI i4 of the boX.

Prior to its attachment to the asbestos sheet bare wires are wrapped around the mica sheet to provide wires I3 at the under side oi the sheet and I6 at the upper side of the sheet. To safeguard these wires against displacement and to assure that they do not touch one another or the metallic sides of the box the mica sheet at its edges is indented as at il for the reception of the, wires. The electrical connection of these wires is such that there are two circuits iin` parbecause the resistance of the wire is such that if a single circuit were used the wire would be so long as to set up a resistance which would practically prevent the current from passing` through it. By use of the parallel circuits two shorter wires are utilized neither of which affords a resistance as great as would a single wire of an equivalent length. With the parallel circuits suiicient wire 'is available to properly cover the upper and under sides of the mica sheet IS so as to properly distribute the heat throughout the unit. The arrangement provides suiicient heat to rapidly heat the metallic plate or top 4 of the box B.

'Ihe attachment of the current conductors 20 and 2l to the battery of the delivery wagon is not specically illustrated. vBetween the battery and the sealer and preferably on the oor of the delivery truck for convenient operation and to leave the hands of the delivery man free, a current control switch in the form of a foot operable button 22 is provided.

A second mica plate 23 is positioned in the box immediately beneath the top 4 thereof and is of the same dimensions as the interior di` mensions of the box. This plate will prevent any possibility of short circuit between the wires I6 on top of the mica disc I-2 and the box top. Mica is a good conductor of heat and consequently the disc 23 will not oer any obstruction to the passage of heat to the top 4 of the box which constitutes the sealing plate of the device.

Although it is not absolutely essential it has been found desirable to provide an insulating mica plate 25 between the ends of the wires i5 and l E and the current supply conductors 2|] and 2l. This plate is an assurance that there Will be no electrical `short circuit between the bare wires I5 and IB and the current supply conductors. y

The box B should be composed of very thin metal or at least the top thereof should be thin so that it will heat quickly and thus hold to a minimum the drain of current on the battery. A device built as illustrated and described will become hot enough within a few seconds to seal the wrappers.

It is not intended that the box top or sealing plate 4 become red-hot. In fact it does not as such intensive heat is not necessary.

The operation of the device is as follows:

Upon discovery of a broken wrapper the delivery man merely steps upon the switch button 2.2 which causes the sealing plate 4 to become hot with-in a few seconds.y The unsealecl portion of the Wax or thermoplastic wrapper is then applied to the hot plate and a resealing of the Wrapper is accomplished almost instantaneously. The resealing having been accomplished the bread package is then pushed over onto the end or table top-like portion 24 of the block and allowed to cool which will require only a very short interval of time.

require only a few seconds and due to the foot The complete operation will 4 operated current control the delivery man has both of his hands free for the manipulation of the bread package for accomplishing the resealing thereof.

It will be evident that the heating unit composed of the Wire wrapped mica sheet and the asbestos plate is a complete unit in the sense that it is all secured together. As a consequence it can be slid into and removed from the box at will for replacement orrepair merely by the removal of the box from the block which can be readily and quickly accomplished by loosening the screws 6.

The device is simple and cheap of manufacture but is highly eicient in operation and provides a convenient and rapid means by which wrappers can be resealed and thus eiect a large saving of what would otherwise be unmarketable products. The products the wrappers of which have become unsealed are not marketable for the reason that without the present invention the product would have to be returned to the plant for resealing or rewrapping and this rehandling would in many instances cost more than the value of the product. Even if the product could be economically returned to the plant for rewrapping the product, by the time it reached the market for redelivery would in respect to bakery products be classified as stale and not suitable for sale as a first class fresh product.

I claim: i

1. A sealer for thermoplastic or waxed wrapped bread or the like for use in a delivery vehicle comprising, a solid block having an opening in its top and adjacent one of its ends, a box of a size to fit lwithin and fill Isaid opening and means for removably securing the box in the opening, said box having a thin metallic top disposed substantially ilush with the top surface of said block, an electrical heat resistance element Within said box and in heat exchange relationship with the thin metallic top thereof, means to secure said block in a convenient position Within a motor vehicle provided with an electric battery, electrical conductors interconnecting said vehicle battery and said heating element, and a foot operable circuit maker and breaker connected to said conductors for controlling the supply of current to the heating element.

2. A device of the character described comprising a solid block having an opening in its top and adjacent one end thereof to provide at the other end of the block an article reception surface, a metallic box removably disposed within .said opening and having a thin top disposed substantially ush with the top of the block` means removably securing said box in said opening, said box having oppositely disposed open sides, a heating element insertable and removable from said box through one of said open sides thereof, said heating element being of the electric resistance type and comprising an asbestos plate of a size to fit snugly within said box, a mica disc having electrical resistance Wires extending across its top and bottom, said mica disc being secured to said asbestos plate, current conductors electrically connected to said mica disc carried wires, said mica disc being of a smaller size than said asbestos plate and secured to said plate to pro-- vide an extending margin of plate at all sides of the mica disc, and a mica disc at and covering the under side of the metallic top of said box, .the parts `operating as and for the purpose described.

3. A construction as defined in claim 2 wherein, the electrical resistance wires extending around the mica disc are arranged in two electric circuits in parallel.

4. A sealer for Cellophane or waxed wrapped bread or the like for use in a delivery Vehicle comprising, a solid block having an opening in its. top and adjacent one of its ends, a box of a size to t Within and ll said opening, means for removably securing the box in the opening, said box having a metallic top disposed substantially flush with the top surface of said block, an electrical heat resistance element within said box and in heat exchange relationship with the metallic top thereof, means to secure said block in a convenient position Within ay vehicle provided with an electrical battery, electrical conductors interconnecting said vehicle battery and said heating element, and a foot operable circuit maker and breaker connected to said conductors for controlling the supply of current to the heating element.

5. A device of the character described comprising a solid block having an opening in its top and adjacent one end thereof to provide at the other end of the block an article reception surface, a metallic box removably disposed within 6 said opening and having a top disposed substantially ush with the top of the block, said box having oppositely disposed open sides, a heating element insertable and removable from said box through one of said open sides thereof, said heating element being of the electric resistance type and comprising an asbestos plate of a size to t snugly Within said box, a mica disc having electrical resistance Wires extending across its top and bottom, said mica disc being secured to said asbestos plate, current conductors electrically connected to said mica disc carried wires, and a mica disc at and covering the under side of the metallic top of said box, the parts operating as and for the purpose described.

FRANK N. IRWIN, Jn.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,120,758 Stirn Dec. 15, 1914 1,607,087 Klasskin et al Nov. 16, 1926 1,940,561 Moore Dec. 19, 1933 

